For those who don’t know the topic: The Visual Effects Society published the VES On-Set VFX Data Collection and Usage Guide to align on set capture and handoffs between production-side VFX, production, facilities, and technology teams. Specific DCC application support is not specified in the sources.

Webinar first, PDF later

If you would rather hear a walkthrough than skim a document, a public webinar runs May 12, 11:00 am to 12:00 pm PDT, with registration via Zoom. The session explores the guide with some of its creators and keeps the conversation in the open, where on set data questions belong instead of buried in a frantic email chain. Join Here

The guide’s job: stop the “what did we shoot” spiral

The VES On-Set VFX Data Collection and Usage Guide is a practical on-set resource that maps key data sets and capture workflows. Its goal is a shared playbook for productions, vendors, and technology teams to use and capture on-set data more effectively.

It aims to establish a common language between on-set VFX, production, VFX facilities, and technology teams, with the intended outcome of clearer communication, smoother handoffs, and better-aligned expectations across departments. In teh real world, that translates to fewer “we thought you had it” moments when the truck already left.

What it actually contains

The guide explains major on-set data sets, their capture methods, their practical applications, and intended stakeholders. It also documents both current and emerging on set data capture workflows and the choices that can impact production pipelines, timelines, and budgets. Included is a sample structure for directories, Reference Docs, ToDo Lists, Scope Definitions and many more usefull bits.

It also frames modern filmmaking as a hybrid of real-time virtual production, AI, and traditional pipelines, and the VFX department these days as responsible not only for post, but also for on-set data capture, continuity, and asset integrity from pre-production through final delivery. It seems the VFX department has become the primary custodian for management and tracking of on-set data across a project’s lifecycle. You wouldn’t trust actors with that, would you?

The boring parts that save your schedule

But on-set data has value beyond VFX. It states that data can support better informed creative and operational decisions and argues for open access and visibility so that teams across a production can engage with and benefit from shared knowledge.

One example is the cross-department logic: LiDAR scans created by VFX can be repurposed for set construction, stunt planning, and other production needs. Obvious, you’d think, but… That is the wrokflow reality check that makes the guide feel like a crew document rather than a glossary, and now we just have to get everybody to read and, ideally, understand it.

Credits, licensing, and the fine print you can actually use

The guide was developed over the past year by the VES Technology Committee. Its lead author is Sheena Duggal, with contributions from Sam Richards, Jim Geduldick, and Jake Morrison, and technical support from Jean-Francois Panisset.

The guide is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license, which permits redistribution and adaptation in any medium or format, including for commercial purposes, provided appropriate credit is given. So, no excuses for “Oh, we don’t have that, so we couldn’t follow it!”

Get the PDF here: On-Set VFX Data Collection and Usage Guide

And browse the Interactive Version here: On-set Data Specs

https://vesglobal.org/event/webinar-introduction-to-ves-on-set-vfx-data-collection-and-usage-guide-online/

https://ves-on-set-data.org/

The post VES releases On-Set VFX Data Guide first appeared on DIGITAL PRODUCTION and was written by Bela Beier.

LotPixel has released LotPixel Hub, a free beta download manager providing access to over 1,300 PBR texture sets. The materials are scan-based, commercial-use-friendly and available at resolutions up to 8,192×8,192 px. Each set includes the standard PBR maps: albedo (diffuse), metallic, roughness, specular (glossiness), ambient occlusion, and normal maps in JPEG format, plus 32-bit EXR displacement maps. The library covers a wide variety of surfaces, from asphalt and stone to fabrics and plastics, like the ones you find in LotPixel’s existing scan library. LotPixel released a bunch of free PBRs last year, so the ecosystem seems to be expanding.

Desktop app and Blender integration

The Hub is currently available for Windows 10 and later. It functions as a desktop asset manager that lets users search, preview and batch-download materials. The standout feature is direct integration with Blender 4.2+ that imports textures and automatically creates shading networks.

The add-on also converts LotPixel’s DirectX normal maps to the OpenGL format Blender expects, preventing inverted normal issues. A built-in material panel allows limited parameter adjustments, such as roughness and displacement strength. LotPixel has confirmed that integrations for other DCCs are planned, including 3ds Max, Cinema 4D, Maya, SketchUp, Unity, and Unreal Engine, though no release timeline has been provided. Not independently verified at press time.

Free assets and commercial use

The free texture sets are part of LotPixel’s larger library of over 6,000 assets. About a quarter of these are available at no cost via the Hub. According to the official site, all downloaded materials are licensed for commercial use, making them suitable for professional environments.

Paid subscriptions for expanded access

Artists who need more than the free selection can subscribe to one of LotPixel’s paid plans. Pricing starts at USD 14 per month or USD 120 per year for individuals earning under USD 150,000 annually. These plans unlock higher-resolution textures, 3D scanned models and decals, and additional monthly credits for downloads. Credit packs are also available as one-off purchases, though exact pricing for those options varies by currency and pack size.

Beta status and platform limitations

LotPixel Hub is in public beta and currently free to use. The company has not stated whether the app will remain free after full release. At present, it supports only Windows systems, with no mention of macOS or Linux versions.

Production considerations

The Hub’s automated import features may simplify texture management in Blender pipelines, though stability and consistency should be tested before use in production environments. The developer recommends that users back up all downloaded content locally, as free library content may change over time. New tools and plugins should always be tested in non-critical projects before deployment in production pipelines.

The post LotPixel drops 1,300+ free PBR textures in Hub app first appeared on DIGITAL PRODUCTION and was written by Bela Beier.

With Roads, artist Marco Pavanello (publishing under Wolf on Superhive Market and on Gumroad) offers a deceptively simple Blender modifier setup for fast, procedural street generation. The tool lets users create complete, textured roads by extruding vertices from any mesh object.

Once a vertex is extruded, a full road mesh appears. Move the vertex, and the path curves dynamically—no additional modifiers or manual UV mapping needed. As the developer describes it: “Extrude a vertex and you’ll get a road, move it and you will create a curve, everything else is magic.” The implementation is built entirely on Blender’s native modifier stack and geometry nodes, meaning no compiled code or scripts are required.

Procedural by Design

Every aspect of the setup is procedural, from the geometry to the surface texturing. The included textures adapt automatically to the mesh deformation, maintaining consistent line markings and edge detail along curves. The system is designed to keep roads planar (flat), which simplifies viewport editing and avoids unexpected Z-offsets during extrusion. Users are reminded that vertical road modelling is unsupported—the surface will always remain level. The asset works in Blender 4.5 and is compatible with both Cycles and Eevee render engines. The creator explicitly recommends linking the asset library rather than appending, ensuring procedural dependencies remain intact when reused across projects.

Junctions and Lanes on Demand

One of the more technical features of Roads is its procedural junction generator. The setup automatically creates intersections for three-, four-, or five-way road crossings. The underlying node graph analyses connecting edges and merges topology to maintain correct lane and marking alignment. Lane count is also controlled via a single slider. Adding or removing lanes dynamically adjusts the overall width and marking patterns without breaking the underlying mesh continuity. All parameters are exposed in Blender’s Modifiers panel, allowing for live adjustments while modelling.

Workflow and Installation

Installation follows Blender’s current Asset Browser workflow. After extracting the Roads ZIP, users must register the folder in Edit → Preferences → File Paths → Asset Libraries, and set the import method to Link. In a new scene, a basic mesh (such as a plane) can serve as a starting object. Once all but one edge are deleted, dragging a Roads asset from the Asset Browser onto that edge instantiates the setup.

The developer suggests adjusting the Clip Start in the View panel to 1 metre for better visibility of painted lane markings. After setup, new roads are created simply by extruding the object’s vertices. Modifying parameters in the Modifiers panel allows fine-tuning of width, lane count, and material properties in real time.

License, Price, and Distribution

Roads is priced at $10 and distributed under a Royalty-Free licence through Superhive Market. The pluugin was authored in Blender 4.5, tested in Cycles and Eevee, and is classified under the platform’s Modifier Setups category. There is no external dependency, no installation script, and no Python component, which means the asset can be shared or version-controlled within production pipelines without modification.

Use Cases in Production

The tool is positioned for environment artists, level designers, and visualisation professionals who need rapid road layouts without external CAD or terrain plugins. Because geometry remains procedural, layout changes can be made interactively without reimporting or rebuilding the mesh.

However, since the asset enforces planarity, it’s best suited for flat terrains like urban scenes, car commercials, or realtime game prototypes where roads do not require elevation changes. The fully procedural texturing can reduce lookdev overhead, particularly in previs or real-time workflows where consistent UV alignment is required but manual texture painting is impractical.

What It Isn’t

Roads is not a terrain conformer, traffic simulator, or spline-based road network generator. It operates strictly within the Blender modifier system. The description on Superhive does not indicate automatic terrain adaptation or decal projection features. All intersections are handled within the node graph and remain 2D. As of publication, there is no mention of bridges, tunnels, or height-based modifiers. These limitations are inherent to its procedural design and must be considered during layout planning.

Testing Recommended

As with any procedural setup, users should test the modifier within their pipeline before committing to production scenes. Modifier behaviour can vary between Blender subversions, and procedural node setups occasionally differ when linked across projects. The developer’s documentation does not specify backward compatibility or version migration procedures.

Verdict

For ten dollars, Roads provides an elegant, minimalist solution for planar road generation in Blender. Its vertex-based extrusion workflow is immediately intuitive, while its reliance on procedural geometry and materials keeps files lightweight and editable. It won’t replace more advanced road tools that support vertical topology or terrain matching, but for quick previs, layout, or stylised city builds, Roads offers remarkable speed for minimal setup. As always, verify compatibility within your current Blender environment before use in production.

The post Procedural Roads Ahead: Blender Add-on “Roads” Lays Asphalt with Vertices first appeared on DIGITAL PRODUCTION and was written by Bela Beier.

Lighting artists, rejoice: A new online library titled Open HDRI has launched, offering 25 high-quality HDRI environments for download, all under a CC0 license. That means: free for commercial use, no attribution demands, no licensing emails, no awkward conversations with Legal.

The emerging library comes from Grzegorz Wronkowski, a photographer with more than a decade of professional HDRI experience. His work has supported visualization and VFX pipelines since 2010 through platforms such as HDRMAPS, Viz-People and HDRI-Skies, with assets also licensed to tools like KeyShot, 3DCoat, Maxwell Render and Adobe Substance. He has produced sequential, location-based environment captures for CD Projekt Red during the early production phase of The Witcher 4 and more recently signed an agreement to supply new HDRIs for Poly Haven. Open HDRI is his independent project: a growing, free library designed for 3D artists, game developers and CG generalists, free from tracking cookies and analytics, recording only anonymous download counts.

Ultra-High Resolution and High EV Range

Lower-resolution variants such as 1K, 4K or 8K are available for viewport use, but the headline feature is ultra-high resolution: select HDRIs are provided at 29,696 × 14,848 pixels, with dynamic ranges between 12 and 27 EVs. Exterior captures generally fall toward the top of that range, delivering enough latitude for realistic relighting and accurate specular behavior even in physically-based workflows. The current set covers domestic, industrial and historic interiors as well as natural and urban exteriors under varied lighting conditions.

Why This Library Belongs in Production Pipelines

The CC0 licensing makes these assets frictionless in large pipelines: they can be used in commercial productions without attribution or rights management. The availability of 29K source material enables lighting for demanding output formats such as 8K deliveries, large projection environments or virtual production LED walls. The EXR format ensures physically meaningful light information, while the diversity of capture environments gives look-dev artists a useful spread of lighting scenarios for both grounded realism and stylized work. Since the library is designed with VFX, arch-viz and real-time engines in mind, Open HDRI fits cleanly into standard pipelines including Unreal Engine and Unity.

Most productions will gladly use the lower-resolution variants for previewing and general lighting due to reduced memory load and faster interaction. However, when final pixels matter, having 29K originals ready in the library allows teams to render high-resolution reflection and lighting passes without scrambling for replacements. Storage administrators may still groan, but at least they will groan in high dynamic range.

Building a Standardized Lighting Library

Studios looking to integrate Open HDRI should approach these assets with the same rigor as any purchased library. HDRIs benefit from tagging by resolution tier, with master files archived alongside lower-resolution proxies for rendering and real-time work. EV range and environment type should be recorded for search and retrieval during look development. Teams targeting real-time engines can generate mip-maps or bake lighting probes from the HDRIs to accelerate performance. Finally, maintaining context metadata like time of day, weather condition, interior versus exterior ensures matches for continuity and scene mood. Clear organization is often what separates useful lighting assets from those that become forgotten experiments on a server share.

More to Come

The current 25 HDRIs mark only the opening phase of the project. Wronkowski intends to release 10–25 new captures each month depending on community support, with donations helping to secure travel, bandwidth and equipment costs. Free does not mean costless, especially when delivering tens of thousands of pixels across a 32-bit dynamic range.

Download

Open HDRI library: https://openhdri.org

Scroll, download, light a scene, no account required.

The post Open HDRI: 25 Free 29K HDRIs (More to come) first appeared on DIGITAL PRODUCTION and was written by Bela Beier.

KitBash3D has added a Washington, D.C. Kit to its Unlimited subscription offering, allowing creators to access high-fidelity models of U.S. capital landmarks and civic architecture for film, games, VR, and visualisation.

What’s in the Washington, D.C. Kit

The kit includes 3D models of key D.C. landmarks and civic assets: the U.S. Capitol, the White House, the Supreme Court, memorials, plazas, museums, and related urban infrastructure. Geo-material detail is a focus: the team studied Aquia Creek sandstone, Colorado marble, and other historically significant materials to replicate textures and architectural character.

To support large scale uses, the creators developed multiple texture variants and custom solutions rather than relying on one or two material types across large surfaces. They also optimised assets to balance detail with usability for real-time or offline rendering workflows. Beyond historical structures, the kit offers modern office complexes and complementary urban elements to allow mix-and-match cityscapes. For users who need more than just the kit, there is also a “Washington, D.C. Expanded Bundle,” which includes additional substance materials, vehicles (police cruiser, large SUV, city bus), and related assets.

Unlimited or Standalone — Licensing Options

The Washington, D.C. Kit is now available via KitBash3D Unlimited, meaning subscribers can access it as part of their library subscription. For those who prefer ownership, it is also sold individually or in expanded bundles.

Challenges & Design Choices

In a “Behind the Kit” post, the KitBash3D team outlined some of their primary challenges. Scaling up architectural models without obvious tiling or visible repetition in textures posed significant difficulties. Some surfaces required bespoke textures, especially where the scale magnified flaws or pattern repeats.

The team also emphasised the tradeoff between optimisation and visual fidelity. They note that optimisation does not always mean using fewer resources; sometimes introducing new materials or more variants leads to better visual quality without harming performance. The project was reportedly one of the most ambitious for KitBash3D in terms of scale and architectural complexity.

Why This Matters for Creators

For VFX artists, environment designers, virtual production teams, and archviz specialists, the Washington, D.C. Kit offers a fast route to building cinematic capital city environments without modelling everything from scratch. The combination of recognised landmarks and supporting urban assets gives flexibility for storytelling across genres—political drama, sci-fi reimaginings, alternate history, or educational simulation.

Because the kit supports both historic and modern elements, users can blend eras or propose speculative scenarios. Meanwhile, the texture and geometry optimisations help maintain performance in real-time engines or render pipelines. That said, creators should test integration (scale, LODs, shaders) in their pipelines before committing to full shots.

Bottom Line

KitBash3D has extended its Unlimited catalogue with a Washington, D.C. kit — a detailed, modular, architecturally faithful set of civic assets, available either via subscription or standalone. The design balances historical fidelity, scale, and real-world usability. With the current state of Washington and its inhabitants, anything that makes it possible not to visit in person is a welcome addition to any toolkit.

The post Capitol Scenes Go Digital — KitBash3D Adds Washington, D.C. to Unlimited Library first appeared on DIGITAL PRODUCTION and was written by Bela Beier.